A mouth-watering dish from the country of cheese and wine-Italy. This recipe is á la carte. An easily prepared recipe that has every flavor and is a tango to your taste buds. This recipe will find its place in every cookbook. The trump card of this recipe is that it is made of ingredients that are easily available at home. It is truly a gourmet’s delight. We all are usually on the lookout for such recipes that save time and without doubt, this main course recipe occupies pride of honor not only in the kitchen, but also in your family member’s heart.
Complexity level
Easy
Time taken
50 minutes to 1 hour
Ingredients
Chicken legs, thighs, wings, assorted pieces- 4 lbs in total
Skinned pine nuts, dry roasted, 1 cup
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3 large garlic cloves
1 tablespoon low-fat butter or margarine
2 cups unpitted or pitted green Italian olives or oiled-black olives
2 bay leaves
¼ cup white wine
Salt and pepper for seasoning as per taste
6 fresh sage leaves or 1 teaspoon dry sage powdered
¼ cup water
Process
1. Thoroughly cleanse the chicken pieces to release impurities if any, and pat dry with a kitchen towel. Remove all the excess skin and visible fat. Cut drumsticks from the thighs and cut the breast halves into quarters. Season the chicken with the salt and pepper.
2. Pour the olive oil and butter in a pan, and keep the pan over medium heat. When the butter melts, add the chicken pieces, with their skin side down. Add the garlic cloves and bay leaves in between the chicken pieces.
3. After adding the whole spices, cover the pan with a lid and let the chicken cook on gentle heat, cooking slowly until brown, infusing its fat and juices. After 10 minutes, uncover the lid, slowly stir the pieces, then put on the cover again. Repeat the same process after 10 minutes.
4. While the chicken turns brown, pit the olives (if you aren’t using unpitted olives). If you’re using small olives try to keep them whole. If you are using larger olives smash them with either a blade of a kitchen knife to remove pits if any, and chunk them to pieces. Cover and continue to cook.
5. After 30 minutes have passed, uncover the lid and check the chicken. Spread the olives evenly in the pan, and add the wine. Increase the heat so that the juices come to a boil. Cover again, and cook, gradually till the juices mix well with the chicken, for about five minutes.
6. Uncover the lid again and stir the pieces well, so as to evaporate the juice, turning the chicken pieces and olives. If a lot of fat has stored up in the pan’s bottom, slightly tilt the skillet and scrape out the fat from the side.
7. Spread the pine nuts on the chicken pieces, and continue to cook without a lid while occasionally turning the pieces.
8. Turn off the heat and pour the chicken right from the pan into skillet, or place the pieces on a platter or in a shallow serving bowl. Take out any pine nuts left in the pan, and spread over the chicken.
Tips
1. The more time you take to cook the chicken, it will be more tender and melt in the mouth.
2. Olives should be preferably unpitted.
